


Don't Fear the Past, I am Your Future

by Kestrealbird



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst, Dino is surprisingly gentle, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fear, Nightmares, Non-explicit vomit, Other, Poor Prompto, Small bit of Fluff at the end, The Scourge deserves it's own tag to be honest, World of Ruin, it's mostly Hurt/Comfort probably
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 05:51:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12575104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kestrealbird/pseuds/Kestrealbird
Summary: The door won't open but he has a key. It’s on his wrist, just like always.The barcode glows. The door opens. He locks it behind him, panting. Where are they?Huh…? Where are who? Who was he looking for?He doesn't remember.





	Don't Fear the Past, I am Your Future

**Author's Note:**

> Shout out to my good friend [Onpanwa](http://onpanwa.tumblr.com/) for being my beta and cheering me on. They're wonderful and you should check out their art on tumblr 
> 
> Cheesy title is cheesy but I hate titles I can never think of good ones so *shrug* what you gonna do

_It’s dark, so dark, and he can’t see his hands in front of his face._

_He has to run. Has to get away from them._

_It’s cold. Where are the others? They aren't here with him. Why aren't they here with him?_

_Hundreds of voices laugh and gurgle and plead and scream behind him, melding together like a sick cacophony of noise, and he can't tell if they’re all separate entities, or a huge consciousness that can’t tell what or where it is._

_Clawed hands and teeth and appendages that aren't solely human reach out to snag his clothes, pulling, pulling, pulling, and he tries to wrench himself free._

_“Where are you going?”_

_“You’re one of us aren't you?”_

_“Join us.”_

_“We are you and you are me.”_

_“Help me.”_

_“Save me!”_

_“Don't leave me!”_

_“For the glory of Niflheim!”_

_“No...my baby...give him back…”_

_“Mama...where are you….”_

_Childish giggling._

_Terrified screams._

_Mocking laughter._

_Languages he doesn't understand._

_Voices talking over and over again, assaulting his ears, his senses, and he can't make out whose who, they all sound the same, what are they saying, what do they mean?_

_A door in front of him. If he could just reach there, then this parasitic thing won't be able to drag him into the murky black depths. He won't have to hear them anymore, he’ll be safe._

_The door won't open but he has a key. It’s on his wrist, just like always._

_The barcode glows. The door opens. He locks it behind him, panting. Where are they?_

_Huh…? Where are who? Who was he looking for?_

_He doesn't remember._

_A man stands in front of him, slowly clapping. A cruel grin stretched across his lips. He freezes. This man is dangerous, he needs to get away but he can't move, something is stopping him, he’s being restrained by something._

_Help me, help me, help me._

_“Did you really think they’d come for you?” The man laughs, and it’s worse than metal scraping across raw bones; it’s worse than blood gurgling in a fire or the smell of flesh burning in a sewer._

_The man is suddenly in front of him, reaching out to touch his hair. He wants to cry out, to scream and fight but he can’t move. His mouth feels like cotton, his body is heavy like lead._

_“You’re not human,” he sneers, smiling, “you’re a monster. Just like me. A failed experiment.” No, no, no it’s not true! He’s human! Just like the others! “Human…? Of course you’re not. That's why you’re marked isn’t it? Even if you were a human, how could they ever accept a Niff like you? Your blood is cursed regardless.”_

_He wants to cry, but his tears feel thick like tar. They shouldn’t feel like that._

_“See?” The man laughs. “Even your tears aren't human. If they really wanted you, then why aren't they here? They left you, didn’t they? They left you allll alone.”_

_The man leans closer, whispering directly into his ear. “But...that’s okay. Because,” his voice morphs into hundreds at once, all with different ways of speaking and he can't tell who is who again, he thought he was free, why can’t he be free? “We’ll always be here with you. Forever and ever.”_

_No! He doesn't want that!_

_Something touches his lips, and his mouth is forced open. He chokes on whatever is in there, tears made of black blood streaking down his face like poison. A hand grips his throat, cutting off his air._

_He can’t breathe…._

~~~~

Prompto wakes up with a violent gasp, coughing and spluttering, eyes wide, tears streaming down his cheeks. He sucks in air as quickly as he can, looking around himself desperately, though he knows nobody is here.

He hasn’t seen them since Noctis disappeared into the Crystal last year, and the thought of being abandoned makes bile rise in his throat.

He’s outside before he knows it, shaking and crying as he retches into the bushes, hands clutching at his own arms so tightly he’s distantly surprised they haven't started bleeding.

He hacks and coughs, trying to dispel contents from his stomach that don't even exist. His throat burns. Ardyn’s cruel laughter echoes in his ears, and he chokes, pleading for the pain to stop. The feeling of claws tearing at his clothes doesn't leave, and Prompto covers his ears, gripping his hair as he cries, hunching over into a ball.

He wants Gladio to hold him. He’d feel so much safer in those arms.

He wants Ignis to stroke his hair, to tell him he’s alright, that they’re here with him.

But they aren't.

He knows it isn't their fault, but he still wants them here. They wouldn’t abandon him would they? They talk, when they can, yet he still feels as if he’s being left behind. It’s a horrible, lonely feeling.

Sometimes, when he sees his reflection, red eyes will stare back, emotionless, and his skin will be ash grey, black cracks spreading like frost over his reflection’s body. But when he blinks, the illusion breaks, and it’s just himself looking back.

Sometimes he’ll see Ardyn or the Scourge out of the corner of his eye, but when he turns there’s nothing there.

The worst part, is that he can’t tell if those images are real or not.

Footsteps sound behind him, crunching on the grass. Prompto panics, instinctual fear taking over as he summons his gun and twists around. His finger is so close to pulling the trigger, but the sight of the person in front of him makes Prompto stop.

“Dino…”

Dino smiles, awkwardly, and points to the gun. “Before we get into all this could you…?”

Prompto startles, quickly banishing the gun with a mumbled apology.

“Don’t just walk up to me like that-” he curls up tighter, shivering from the cold- “what if I’d shot you?”

Would that make him the same as the Scourge inside of him? If he’d shot Dino and killed him on the spot?

Would Ardyn take pity on his grief, and turn him into a creature incapable of feeling emotions? Or would he simply laugh and pet Prompto’s hair like he did so many times in Zegnautus?

He doesn't want Ardyn to touch his hair, to _taint_ his face, ever again. Ardyn’s Scourge infested blood had felt horrible on his skin, and tasted even worse on his tongue.

He isn’t a murderer though. Is he?

Dino squats down in front of him, close enough to _touch_ , if Prompto wanted to, but far enough that he doesn’t feel enclosed. Had Dino always been this gentle? This considerate?

“Hey.” His voice is uncharacteristically soft, or maybe that’s just because Prompto has never had a chance to really get to know the man. “Is it okay if I sit next to you?”

“Huh…?”

Dino half-shrugs and he looks about as awkward as Prompto felt when he first started talking to Cor. “Well, you look pretty freaked out right now, so I wouldn’t want to make it worse by invading your space without permission.”

It’s been so long since someone showed they cared. It brings tears to Prompto’s eyes.

Dino panics and starts hovering, stammering out an apology but Prompto stops him half-way through. “Why...are you here?” It doesn't make sense. They’re acquaintances at best, and Dino has no reason to be here. It’s not like he owes Prompto anything.

He looks embarrassed. “I’ve never been that great at ignoring someone’s tears. Don’t like seeing people upset, so I try to help them when I can,” he mumbles.

Prompto has never considered that before. It’s an odd thing to think about, but, strangely, it’s not completely impossible to believe. Dino is _here_ , at God knows what time in the morning, and it looks as if he won't leave unless Prompto really wants him to.

He doesn't want to be alone right now, so he’ll take whatever good company he can get, while he can. It wouldn’t be fair for Dino to sit here in the cold and the dark with him though. Especially with the scent of vomit in the air.

“...there’s vomit in the bushes.” It sounds like he’s pointing out the obvious, and Dino might think so too because he laughs. Prompto blushes up to his ears, hair fluffing up like a bird’s feathers.

“There is,” he agrees with a lopsided grin. He looks handsome like this, when he isn’t putting on a skeevy act for his clients. His fingers twitch for his camera, but he left it back at the hotel. “I’m used to seeing it, though. Loads of people get drunk around Galdin, and even more get seasick.” He’s trying to lighten the mood, Prompto realizes, and it’s working, to an extent. He feels calmer, at least.

He can work with this. Dino is inviting him to have a conversation, and if it distracts him from his thoughts, then he’s more than willing to jump at the chance.

“Have you ever been sea-sick?” His voice is still shaky, and his nightmare lurks at the back of his mind, but Dino is a _distraction_ , he’s someone to _focus on_ and that’s what he needs right now. More than anything.

“Nope!” He pops the ‘p’ with a smug look in his eye. “I have, however, been airsick. And let me tell you-” He points a finger at Prompto- “that it’s one hell of an experience.”

Prompto shuffles closer, wanting to know more. Dino decides that squatting on his heels is, in fact, a bad idea, and ends up sitting cross-legged on the grass. “ _You’ve_ been in a airship before?”

“Sure have!”

“When?” There’s a lot of disbelief in his voice right now, but he figures it’s justified, since he always thought that Dino just...lived in Galdin and never left.

“I had to get here somehow didn’t I?”

What? He wasn’t born here, then? He sure as hell sounds like he was.

“So if you’re not from here then where did you come from?”

Prompto isn’t sure what answer he was expecting -Accordo, maybe- but it certainly wasn’t Tenebrae. Dino looks a little sad when he says it. “I was there, when it fell to the Empire.”

“I’m so-”

“Don't be.” Dino’s voice is firm, but not harsh. “You’re a Niff right? Don’t look so shocked, it’s not so hard to tell when you’ve seen them next to a Tenebraean.”

Oh. Well. He isn’t wrong, exactly. Most people assumed Prompto was Tenebraean, but his skin was too fair, with too many freckles -easily burnt- and his eyes weren’t a single shade of blue. His hair was too bright, compared to Luna’s pale locks, and his general build was just. Different.

“If you knew that,” he whispers, unsure and curious, “then why did you treat me the same as anyone else?”

Dino goes quiet for a long time and when he finally speaks, he pulls Prompto into a hug. He’s _warm_ . “Because you aren't the enemy. Sure, you’re a Niff, but that doesn’t make you who you are. Aranea is a Niff, too, but I don’t see her ravaging villages and ruining lives. I don't treat you any differently from anyone else, because you’ve never given me a reason to.” A sob escapes his throat as he shakes in Dino’s arms. Dino holds him closer, and he may not be Gladio or Ignis or Noctis, but he’s still here. He’s _someone_.

“I don't know what you’ve been through, and I’m not gonna push you for those details, but I am here if you want to talk. So, don’t fear the past, okay?” He lifts Prompto’s head, wiping away the tears with a smile, “I’ll be your future until your friends come back.”

He laughs, even if it is a little watery. “That’s such a sappy thing to say.”

“Maybe,” Dino shrugs, “but I cheered you up, didn’t I?”

“You just want someone to go Jewel hunting for you.”

Dino sighs and it’s just this side of exaggerated. “Oh no,” he moans, “you caught my nefarious scheme.”

“It’s not that hard to catch when you sound like a Disney Villain,” he teases.

“Wow. Rude. See if I pay you back for Jewel Hunting now.”

They’re both smiling. It feels like he’s been friends with Dino for years. It’s almost the same feeling he had when he first started talking with Noctis. Almost, but not quite.

“What were you going to do? Be my personal Crafter?”

Dino nods, completely serious.

Prompto snickers into his shoulder. “I’d rather have someone who can stitch up my injuries.”

“As long as you don’t need me to push anything back inside of ya, or give any amputations, then we’ll be right as rain.” Ignis used to say that phrase too. Seems he really _is_ Tenebraean after all.

“That’s fair enough.”

They stand up, stretching out their muscles, and Dino invites him back to his place. He still isn’t completely calm, and he’ll probably keep having that nightmare for a while, but at least he has Dino here to help him through it.

It’s more than he’d expected, and everything he deserves.


End file.
